Link Dump Friday №319

Monkeys and robots and candy filled boxes, graveyards and diners but no games with foxes, time travel with monkeys and engineered buildings, these are a few of this Link Dump's things!

News and Previews

Summer is Dead... in a Good Way It's been four years since the original smash-hit tower defense gamePlants vs Zombies was released, so don't you think it's about time for a sequel? Well, so does PopCap, and this July, look forward to playing Plants vs Zombies 2: It's About Time! Not much else is known, but heck, we have more Plants vs Zombies coming... isn't that enough? Check out a (very silly) announcement trailer here, and make sure to follow them on Facebook to find out more as it happens.

Typewriters Are For ChimpsOooh oooh oohh AHH AHHH AHHHH pthththtbBBBBbrrrrt! If you spoke monkey like a true gentleperson, then you'd know that was me telling you Size Five Games (Ben There, Dan That! and Time Gentlemen, Please!) has announced their newest upcoming game for PC, Mac and Linux, Gun Monkeys! A "devastatingly-indie, Procedurally-Generated, Physics-based, Online Deathmatch platform game"? Awwwww yeah, now we're talking. How can you not like a game whose trailer begins with, "Here's the plan. We fling monkeys into the future..." Hit up the announcement to learn more, and check out the gloriously chaotic announcement video that should get action fans salivating.

GET IN MAH BELLAY We loved Vertigo Gaming's hectic indie time-managementsimulation gameCook, Serve, Delicious!, and now you have even more reason to play it again, or discover it for the first time with the release of the Extra Crispy Edition for PC and Mac. If you already own the game, it's a free patch that adds ten new foods, breakfast, exotic dish, and rich menus, and some welcome performance tweaks for Mac owners! Cook, Serve, Delicious! isn't for those who frazzle easily, but is is for anyone who loves a fast-paced challenge... and food!

Is This What Forrest Meant?Candy Box!, the bizarre and delightful webtoy that holds a dazzling amount of secrets by 18 year old aniwey, continues to captivate our community. Now, thanks to wonderful reader SrPilha, we have an extensive walkthrough and strategy guide that will help you get started, figure out what to do next... and just what in the world is going on! Candy Box! is one of the most unexpectedly awesome games to come along in, well, a long time, and if you haven't tried it yet... you're seriously missing out.

Kickstarter/IndieGoGo Projects

Inside Everyone is a Grant Imahara Yearning to Break FreeMultiplayer? Good. Sandbox? Awesome. Robots? Sweeeeeeet. Alex Rozgo's upcoming Rawbots sounds like something special for the Doctor Robotnik inside all of you. The game will allow you to build and design your own robots from the ground up to perform every task imaginable in your own universe, where you can program everything from the day and night cycles, to how other players are allowed in... which, of course, opens up great opportunities for trade. Or fighting! The game promises to be easily accessible for newcomers, but also to allow for a ton of detail and tinkering for more hands-on engineering types, and it just might be your next obsession.

Yes, They Make Games About EVERYTHING "Graveyard simulation" might not see like a very fun idea, but Matthew Ritter wants to change your mind with Welcome to Boon Hill, which is billed as exactly that. Boon Hill is a graveyard where you'll be able to wander about and do as you please. No danger, no real goals. It may sound strange and even a little morbid, but the whole point of the game is to explore, learn the stories of the people buried there through interacting with the people who visit and reading epitaphs, and sort of crafting your own narrative through what you see and do as well as through random events. It might not be for everyone, but it definitely looks and sounds unique, and more than worth a peek.

Brains Are Tasty... Usually when we talk about zombie games, the undead are being reduced to a fine paste by us. But in RagTag Studio's quirky action/stealthstrategy gameRay's the Dead, you're the one with a passion for flesh... and world domination! You'll control Ray, a zombie who's reanimated when a bolt of lightning strikes his grave, and finds he's unique in two different ways... first that he's actually a little intelligent, and second that he has a giant bulb sticking out of his head that allows him to control other zombies. As you play, you'll have to use your wits and your growing undead army to not only take down the humans all over the world, but discover Ray's story too. Ray's the Dead looks absolutely gorgeous, and could be the clever, creative zombie game you've been waiting for.

It Worked For the Beverly Hillbillies Anyone who's ever grown up in a small country town and then moved to a big city has to deal with a certain amount of culture shock. I grew up in a tiny Canadian town, and now I live near Epcot in Florida, where the average daily theme park attendance is double my hometown's population. But if you're the protagonist of Ryan Nohr's upcoming retropoint-and-click adventure gameCity Quest, your destiny as a small town bumpkin could be much bigger. Or deadlier! You'll control a hero who leaves the country behind for city-life, and whether that means you wind up a politician, a mafioso, or more is up to you. It looks delightfully quirky and silly, but also possessed of a fantastic old-school flair, so make sure you check this one out. Heck, there's even a free online demo!

The Forest is a Wonderful, Magical Place!Horror meets roguelike and survival adventure? Yes please. Acid Wizard Studio is serving up just that with Darkwood, a procedurally generated "top-down, oldschool, sandbox survival horror" inspired by the works of David Lynch. You awaken, amnesiac, in a frightening forest with an orphan child as your only companion, and you'll need to craft, explore, and even grow your character's skills with perks if you want to survive. Darkwood bills itself as "old school hard", but they should be calling it "Awwww yeah", because it looks like exactly what horror enthusiasts have been waiting for.

Miscellaneous

Thieving With Friends We loved the co-op indie stealth gameMonaco for good reason... it was awesome. I'm still playing it, but you probably don't want to play with me because I am mentally incapable of playing any multiplayer game channelling anything other than Team Fortress 2's Heavy. But creator Andy Schatz thinks you should be playing with people, and has written an editorial over at Kotaku talking about just how his game encourages cooperation over, y'know, buttheadery. It's an interesting read, and certainly an attitude we should encourage when most of us have probably had a gaming experience ruined by another player who wanted nothing more than to cause grief to boot.

That's Twice As Fine Like setting your own price, especially when it comes to quality games? Then open your wallet, because the Humble Double Fine Bundle is here! Pick up three great games for whatever you want, beat the average to unlock Jack Black, and pay at least $35.00USD to unlock their upcoming adventure game, Broken Age. This is a great deal if you're a fan of Double Fine's stellar adventure games... and trust us when we say, you should be.

Do you know an upcoming indie project or some community gaming related news you think deserves some attention? Send me an e-mail with LINK DUMP FRIDAY in the subject line at dora AT casualgameplay DOT com with the info, and we'll judge it with the all-seeing glare of our own self-importance for inclusion in a future Link Dump Friday article!

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